Night Riviera - merged posts, ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[LiskeardRich]

What's really needed is a business orientated service leaving Paddington at around 0530, getting into Plymouth before 0900 to allow for a full day's business, the current first arrival is far too late.

Until quite recently, this first Plymouth train of the day via the Berks and Hants was the 09:06 off Paddington - the 07:06 was introduced as a Paignton service with a change at Newton Abbott, and recently that was diverted to Plymouth Penzance.

Arrives at Penzance 1237 I believe.

[ChrisB]

0945 is ample for business....nicely times for a 1000 meeting. It's not intended for long-distance commuting

[bobm]

Depends where the meeting is, if it is in the station caf^ then possibly yes.  However I like to arrive about 10 minutes before the start of a meeting so I can boot the laptop up, sort out wifi codes etc. 

[ChrisB]

Maybe it'll arrive 0935?....still quite possible

[LiskeardRich]

The other option to rail, the coach has 3 arrivals in Plymouth between 0500 and 0600 between national express and megabus. It seems public transport operators think passengers want to be in Plymouth by 0600

[ChrisB]

Students....not workers

[TaplowGreen]

0945 is ample for business....nicely times for a 1000 meeting. It's not intended for long-distance commuting

You have an interesting view of "Business" - try saying to a client whose custom you're chasing "sorry can't meet you at 9, 10 is ample" and see how long the conversation lasts after that.

[ChrisB]

Mo one meets at 9....

[broadgage]

I understand there are plans to provide sleeper lounges at Penzance and Truro for people waiting for the evening up service and to provide a welcome for those getting off the down service in the morning.  Whether these will double up as first class lounges during the day I don't know.

Will these lounges have bunk beds ? or at least reclining seats with pillows and blankets, for use when the 57 on the sleeper fails AGAIN

[SandTEngineer]

Mo one meets at 9....

Oh yes they do.  In the opposite direction I often have to attend meetings in London that start at 9am and the only train that gets in from the far west is the 0553 from Plymouth which gets into Paddington at 0900......otherwise its the overnight sleeper or stay in a hotel the night before.....or be late for the meeting start

[ChrisB]

Interesting - only conference registrations in my experience do.....otherwise 0930 is the earliest generally in my experience.

[grahame]

Interesting - only conference registrations in my experience do.....otherwise 0930 is the earliest generally in my experience.

In the Souuth West, we lykes to start earleee, Chris B.

I have an 08:30 tomorrow ... and a couple of weeks back an 07:30 to an event to listen to Diane Burke of GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) talk about the new brand.  Oh - and I have an 09:00 in Plymouth next Monday;  wish the 06:38 from Melksham had a connection at Westbury.   That would be a fictional 05:45 from Paddington (Reading, Westbury, Taunton, Exeter, Newton Abbot, Plymouth)

[PhilWakely]

Mo one meets at 9....

When I was working - based in Exeter - I regularly had meetings at our other offices, in Salisbury, Bristol, Dorking and London, and can count on the fingers of one hand the number of morning meetings that started later than 9am.

[PhilWakely]

What's really needed is a business orientated service leaving Paddington at around 0530, getting into Plymouth before 0900 to allow for a full day's business, the current first arrival is far too late.

Until quite recently, this first Plymouth train of the day via the Berks and Hants was the 09:06 off Paddington - the 07:06 was introduced as a Paignton service with a change at Newton Abbott, and recently that was diverted to Plymouth.   On Saturday, Ben Rule announced  that there's to be an earlier service too (06:37, I think) starting quite soon, at around 06:37 from Paddington

There are currently four Bristol-bound services during the week that leave Paddington before 7am and the first of these arrives in Bristol before the first Plymouth-bound service leaves Paddington. If a Plymouth-bound passenger chose to travel via Bristol on the first of these (05:19), they would still not arrive in Plymouth until 10:33!

[LiskeardRich]

0945 is ample for business....nicely times for a 1000 meeting. It's not intended for long-distance commuting

You have an interesting view of "Business" - try saying to a client whose custom you're chasing "sorry can't meet you at 9, 10 is ample" and see how long the conversation lasts after that.

Even 10 is early for a meeting in my experience. Majority of mine are 11am - 1pm or 2-4pm